Huge thanks to Bev Doole from Winepress, who showcased one of our very own Pastoral Care Team – Delwyn Murray – in a recent feature article.
The article shines a spotlight on the significant work our Pastoral Care Team do, and how vitally important it is for our RSE Workers…
Article reproduced from WinePress, October 2025
It’s 11pm on a Sunday night and Delwyn Murray is by the roadside in Seddon, farewelling another group of RSE workers as they board the bus to Christchurch to catch their plane home.
Home for them is Vanuatu but Delwyn, a pastoral care co-ordinator for Seasonal Solutions Cooperative, is their “mum” in Marlborough for up to seven months of the year. She looks after six houses of workers in Seddon and provides advice and practical support for everything from good diet to dealing with internet scams.
“In the winter I have up to 74 workers from Kiribati and Vanuatu, and in the summer there is Fiji as well,” says Delwyn. “My phone beeps from quite early in the morning. That’s my chiefs, the team leaders in each house, messaging to let me know if someone’s not going to work that day. I check in on them and decide what’s needed – doctor, rest or dentist.” She’s also available during the day if a worker has an accident or is unwell and needs to be picked up early. “It’s pretty much 24/7 – I’ve done a midnight run to the hospital and got out at four o’clock in the morning and the birds are singing.”
But pastoral care is much more than organising medical visits. It’s also about welcoming and settling the men in their houses (which are owned by members of the Seasonal Solutions Cooperative), helping with nutrition to keep fit and healthy, setting up internet banking, arranging sport, fishing and cultural activities.
Delwyn says a lot of workers come back each year but every season brings a few new recruits. “The senior men show them the ropes, they know where to shop, where the church is, what to do in the house. I keep a close eye on the new ones but I rely on the chiefs a lot – they’re the ones that let me know if someone needs something but they haven’t already come to me directly.”
For those in Marlborough for the first time, the SSCO pastoral care team organise a fun night between RSE houses in Blenheim and Seddon. “We bring all the newbies together in town and have pizza, marmite crackers, L&P, doing the Kiwi thing.”
Delwyn says she loves these communal gatherings. “I’m Māori from the Far North, I grew up among a large extended family and I think that helps me understand the men – they’re from big families and that family network functions so that they can be here.”
Early in her career Delwyn worked at the Department of Social Welfare in Thames, managing benefits and pensions. She then studied for a diploma in horticulture and worked in kiwifruit and citrus orchards, contract picking and pruning. Later, she was the only woman working in a sawmill up north, grading timber. “I was on the night shift with a lot of Niuean and Māori men, and the culture is similar – it’s very much a man’s world, the man is the provider. I also understand about going where the work is, because that’s what my family has done too”.
In her pastoral care role, Delwyn is keen to make sure the men stay connected to their families back home. “They make big sacrifices to come and work here, to achieve their financial and personal goals for themselves, their families and their communities.””
Social media has made it easier to keep in contact and Delwyn has a personal goal to help bridge the gap between New Zealand and home. “I love taking photos that they can share on Facebook so their wives and families can see what their life is like here. The men take photos at work, but they don’t take photos of themselves – I do that.”
Her Facebook feed includes pictures of the men fishing with her husband, Dean, for kahawai. “If they catch a lot, they ask ‘Mum, can you smoke our fish?’ And we’re happy to – it’s just something we can do. You do become like family. They’re wonderful men. I’ve never had any trouble – we respect each other.”
And that respect spans the bridge back to Vanuatu, Kiribati and Fiji. “One of the lovely things is getting a message from a wife saying thank you for taking care of my husband,” says Delwyn.
SSCO is one of the largest Recognised Seasonal Employers in New Zealand. Their pastoral care coordinators looked after 481 workers in Marlborough this winter.
“Pastoral care continues to play a vital role in supporting RSE workers, strengthening communities here and in the Pacific, and safeguarding the reputation of Marlborough wine”
Tanya Pouwhare – Deputy Chair and Human Rights Lead for NZ Ethical Employers
